Value Chains Teaching Materials for a Course in Agricultural Marketing

These curriculum materials are based on case studies of Organic Valley, Country Natural Beef, Shepherd’s Grain and Red Tomato developed by the Agriculture of the Middle initiative. These case studies offer models of how mid-sized farms and ranches can prosper through producing and selling high-quality, differentiated food products into a variety of markets.

Course instructors can use these curricular resources to explain the differences between mainstream and values-based food supply chains. The Agriculture of the Middle case studies provide a foundation for analysis and discussion of concepts such as sustainable supply chain management and new generation cooperatives.

Current funding support provided by United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) through the Multistate project, NC-1198, “Renewing an Agriculture of the Middle: Value Chain Design, Policy Approaches, and Environmental and Social Impacts” (2012 -2017).